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maggiespages's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Death of parent, Violence, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Blood, Alcoholism, and Injury/Injury detail
darlenemarshall's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
thecatsmother's review
adventurous
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Prodigal Son is the sixth book in the deservedly bestselling Orphan X series about a former assassin on a mission to redeem himself by helping out people in life-threatening trouble.
These are action-packed thrillers with an ever-enlarging cast of entertaining support characters, and it would definitely help to have read the earlier books but it’s not essential to follow the plot.
Evan Smoak thought he had retired The Nowhere Man, on the orders of the US President, but when he gets a call from someone claiming to be his mother, asking him to help a friend’s son, he can’t resist looking into it. Andre just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, but now he has a pair of relentless contract killers on his tail, hired to cover up a shocking new weapon. This time Evan is vulnerable from his long lost mother’s revelations, and the new longing for family connection denied him as an Orphan - so he is going to need help from all his friends to complete his mission.
I’ve thoroughly enjoyed all of the books in this series, but for some reason this one didn’t grab me in quite the same way and it has taken me nearly a week to finish, which is very unusual for me. It was partly all the technology and gadgets, but also I wasn’t completely convinced by Evan’s rapid acceptance of Veronica’s confessions and willingness to help her. I did like the flashbacks to his time in the foster home, and his current interactions with surrogate-daughter Joey - and Dog, of course! The villains are suitably evil, and there are also plenty of common-or-garden Crap Men who get schooled on how to treat women appropriately by our hero.
It’s still a very good read, it just suffers by comparison with its predecessors.
NB this does end on a fairly major cliffhanger, which I’m not a fan of especially as the next book, Dark Horse, is not out until February. I’m still hoping it might come up on NetGalley although I was declined an ARC of this one, so may just have to wait patiently - not my forte!
NB this does end on a fairly major cliffhanger, which I’m not a fan of especially as the next book, Dark Horse, is not out until February. I’m still hoping it might come up on NetGalley although I was declined an ARC of this one, so may just have to wait patiently - not my forte!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Physical abuse, Torture, and Violence
Minor: Animal death
Cliffhanger ending
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